Fire Emblem Origin of Volke
by Hawk725
Summary: The mysterious Volke's life before he met Greil was dangerous, full of fights, and stealing. Find out what he has to steal and who he has to assasinate.
1. The Treasure

Disclaimer I do not own Fire Emblem or their characters in any way shape or form.

Fire Emblem Origin of Volke

Chapter 1 The Treasure

There once was a sixteen year old boy who lived in an ally outside Crimea's castle in Melior. His name was Volke. While other children played he would steal. He had no parents, brothers, sisters, or even any other kind of relative for that matter. He had only one friend. A seventeen year old boy by the name of Bastian. Bastian would visit Volke in his ally by the castle three days a week to give him food. Bastian would ask Volke questions about him or about his past, but Volke would say the same thing to every question. "Ten-thousand," is how he would respond.

"Surely you jest my friend," said the young mage.

"I need money to live on. Besides I had no intention of answering your question anyway," responded the thief.

"Volke, I only thought that thy might want to get it off thy chest. So what do you say?" asked Bastian.

"Ten-thousand."

Bastian sighed. "Fine. I have a proposition for you though. The king's most valuable treasure was stolen. I need you to retrieve..."

"Twenty-thousand."

"What? Ahh, fine. I shall pay you five-thousand now and the rest once thy quest is over."

"Agreed," said the eager thief.

"Reports say the item was taken toward Nados Castle."

"I'm off," said Volke as he disappeared.

"Wait, I didn't tell you want it is your stealing! Oh well. He probably knows anyway. Be careful my friend!"

Volke traveled the plains of Crimea looking for signs of a struggle between Crimea's royal knights and the thieves that stole the treasure. He travled for a couple hours until it was night and then he finally reached his destination. Nados Castle had not been used for a long time. Their was moss growing over the castle walls and vines leading from the bottom of the castle all the way to the top. Volke climbed the vines to the top of the castle to see if he could find a way in without using the front door. The young thief eventually found a window on the back side of the castle. He slipped in quietly and without being seen. He slid down a pillar to the ground floor. There were voices coming from deeper in the castle. Volke sneaked across the large hallway. There were statues of various people in Crimea's history all around the hallway. Volke finally reached the source of the voices. He saw what looked to be a Crimean soldier talking with some bandits.

"So this is the sword Amiti?" said one of the bandits.

"Aye. Now where is my payment," demanded the Crimean guard.

"It is over there on the table," a bandit responded.

"Where?It's not here."

Little did they know that Volke had already helped himself to the gold.

Then a fight broke out between the Crimean soldier and the bandits. The soldier managed to dodge most of their attacks and take out three of the five bandits. Volke saw his chance to get the sword. He sneaked up on one bandit and silenced him by slicing his neck with his dagger. When the other bandit with the sword turned around to talk to his companion he saw his dead partner on the floor with blood coming out of his neck. Volke hid himself well. He climbed a pillar and got onto the rafters. The confused bandit looked all around him with his hands shaking as he held the sword. When the bandit finally looked up it was too late. Volke was right above him, bringing his dagger right onto the big bandit's face. There was pools of blood all over the room.

As Volke claimed the sword he said, "I liked this job, maybe I should become an assasin.

In addition to the rest of the money Bastian was going to give him, he stole over fifty thousand gold from the bandits. Volke was very pleased with himself since it was the first time he stole for someone else. Volke began the long trek home to his ally. It took him around five hours to get back. When Volke arrived to the ally Bastian was already there waiting.

"Ah! My friend Volke has returned!" exclaimed Bastian.

"Here is the sword. Now I want my money."

"Yes, here is thy payment. I have one question though. How did you fare against the bandits in battle?"

"Ten-thousand."

"Ah. Very well I will take this back to his majesty at goddess speed," said the odd mage.

"You do that," said Volke.


	2. The Blood Pact

Disclaimer I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way, shape, or form.

Bastian was walking toward Volke's alley, while humming an odd tune. When he got to the ally he looked around and Volke was no where to be seen. "I honestly don't know why my dear friend Volke lives in such a place like this. Oh, what pray tell is this?" Bastian picked up a letter. As he read the note which was addressed to him he gasped at the contents of it. "Ah, it seems thy dearest Volke is on a spiritual journey." Bastian stuffed the letter into his cloak and began humming again as he walked back to the castle.

Meanwhile Volke was presently on his way toward Daein. "I've almost made it. I'm finally glad to be away from that awful Bastian and his weird language." Volke decided to stop at the nearby farm, that he could see in the distance. As he approached the farm he thought to himself. 'Hmm... Maybe I should liberate one of their horses and travel on it, instead of walking.' And Volke did just that. He sneaked his way into the stable. He quickly surveyed the area, to make sure that there wasn't a farmer who could prevent his plan from coming into action. Volke was glad he looked, because there was indeed a farmer in one of stalls milking a cow.

Volke grabbed a jar that was probably used for making butter, and he quietly moved toward the farmer. Volke then knocked the farmer over the head with the jar. To his surprise the jar did not shatter on contact. The cunning young thief seemed rather pleased of himself as he lead the horse out of the barn. He grabbed a saddle on his way out of the barn and strapped it onto the horse. Volke had never ridden a horse before, but he was willing to try anything to rest his legs from walking, for what seemed to be forever. Volke managed to get onto the horse and get the horse going into the direction he wanted to go. The horse was definitely faster than moving on foot. He soon reached the bridge that connected Crimea and Daein. As he crossed the bridge he started to think of what he should do once he reached the nearest town in Daein. He thought of taking up mercenary work, stealing from the rich in Navassa, and maybe even doing some assassination jobs. As Volke was thinking of what he should do he did not notice the large man on a wyvren moving right toward him. By the time he noticed the wyvren rider it was almost too late. Volke jumped off the horse and did a dodge roll. The man's axe cut into the horse that Volke had stolen.

"Hey! What did ya do that for!" Volke yelled with anger.

"Simple, your intruding upon Daein soil." The man on the wyvren responded.

Volke braced himself for a fight drawing two of his knives.

"Ah, a thief. I will spare your life if you would be so kind to do something for me."

"What would that be?" Volke responded.

"I am in need of some information on a certain subject that the Begnion magicians have been researching as of late. It is called a blood pact. I wish to know more about it, but the magicians I have captured will not cooperate with me."

"I guess I have no choice. Where will I find this information for you?" Volke asked the man.

"My spies say that there is a lab hidden within the senate building in the capital of Begnion. You should find it there. Kill any that get in your way. Even if they are senators."

"May I ask for my employer's name? I like to know who it is I'm working for," said Volke.

"You need not know my name. When you obtain the information go to the inn in Nevassa and ask for the future king of Daein, and they will lead you to me."

"Alright, I guess I'll be heading toward Begnion then."

"Remember that you do not tell them anything if you get caught."

"Heh. I never get caught."

"Hahahaha! Good that is what gets us far in this life. Confidence is your greatest ally," said the evil looking wyvren rider.

Volke then headed toward Begnion. Without the horse his speed drastically decreased. It took him a good two weeks to finally arrive in Begnion's capital. Volke decided to take a rest in an ally that was far away from the senate building. Volke knew to not spend his money at inns, so that they wouldn't be able to track his movements after he has stolen the information on the blood pact. When Volke had finally rested his tired legs enough he decided to study the area surrounding the senate building. He found that there were several areas that he could hide. There were several rooftops that most people could not even dream of being able to climb, but Volke could climb anything, he was very strong, and fast, so he did not have to worry about not being able to conceal himself on the rooftops. Once it was dark Volke decided to look in the senate building. He managed to find an open window near the top of the building. Once he was inside he looked for hiding spots. There were several pillars that led to the rafters in the ceiling, which Volke knew he could climb easily. There was also several areas where it would be dark enough for him to stand in, because there was no one who could possibly see him in his dark clothing hiding in the shadows. Volke climbed into the rafters while looking for the secret room. Then Volke heard a door open. He waited in the rafters for the person to show them self. Then a man who looked to be a noble walking down a flight of stairs. Once the man was down the stairs he started to head toward a bookcase. The man then pushed on the bookcase revealing a hidden room. Volke quietly climbed down a pillar and made his way toward the room. The man had neglected to move the bookshelf back into place, so it was easy for Volke to sneak inside. Once Volke entered the room he looked around and only saw a plain desk and a door on the left side of the room. The door was cracked just a little. Volke peeked in and saw the man pulling a book off of a shelf. Volke looked on the floor in front of him and saw another book. On the book cover it said "Curse of the Blood Pact." Volke quietly opened the door and made his way toward the man.

Then all of a sudden the man spoke up. "Hello, Volke."


	3. Mystery Men

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any, way, shape or form.

The man in front of Volke had long black hair, a young face for a senator, and dark green eyes. The man was dressed in a white cloak with a purple sash over his shoulder and tied around his waist.

"How is it that you know my name," asked Volke.

"Well. I was in Crimea and I met a young man by the name of ..."

"Bastian. That idiot has always had a loose tongue," Volke complained.

"Yes, he does. It took a long time for him to quiet his mouth. He told me that you were on a spiritual journey. Of course he also mentioned that you had stolen several things for him. Finally, Bastian said that he had heard that you were on your way to Begnion to acquire something from the senate building."

_Where and how is Bastian getting this information?_ Volke thought.

The man broke Volke's train of thought. "I know you were hired to take all the information about the blood pact. Your employer has been sending men after men to try and find it. He has even abducted several researchers from here in Begnion. I like his ambition. So I have decided to let him have it. Make sure you do not let him know that I gave it to you." Volke nodded in reply to the man. "Now pick up these books and I will escort you out of the building."

Volke picked up every book that said anything about the blood pact and put them into a sack that was laying in the corner. Volke was then escorted out of the building by the mysterious man. Volke then decided that it was too dangerous to stay in the city with the books, so he left the capital city, Sienne.

It took Volke several days to reach the Daein-Begnion border. When he reached the great wall that separates Daein from Begnion, he was searched by the soldiers that were protecting the wall. When they saw that he was only carrying books, they allowed him to enter Daein. Volke had hidden his daggers and knives at the bottom of the sack, in a secret pocket he had made with a patch of cloth.

Volke continued his way toward Nevassa, so that he could collect his pay. Upon reaching Nevassa he looked for an inn. When he finally found one, he followed the wyvren rider's instructions. Volke made his way to the innkeeper's desk. "I'm looking for the future king of Daein."

The innkeeper then smiled and said, "You're awfully young to have done a job for him. I'll let ya have a room until he shows up."

The man showed Volke to a room and handed him a key. Volke decided to take a short nap. He kept his knives next to him on the table by the bed. Volke awoke to the creaking of the door opening. He quickly grabbed his knives, just in case. The door then opened all the way to reveal the wyvren rider who had assigned him the mission he had just got back from.

"Where is the information that I asked you to get?" Volke then pointed to the sack in the corner of the room.

The man quickly opened the sack to find what he had wanted for so long. He was surprised at how many books Volke had managed to acquire. "Where is my payment?" Volke asked.

"Right here," said the man as he threw a sack full of gold to him. "Are you going to count it?"

"I will. When I don't have a dangerous man in the same room as me," replied Volke.

"Hahaha! Well said. I do have another offer for you. Since you did your mission so quickly, I would like for you to become a spy for me."

"For how long?" asked Volke.

"How long do you want it to be?"

"Six months. I would also like to be paid one-hundred thousand in gold."

"Hahaha! I like how ambitious you are. Though I must ask, why only six months?" the man asked.

"I don't like being held in one place for too long," responded Volke.

"I understand. I will gladly pay you what you want. You will make a fine addition to my spies. I will tell you your first mission later this week. For now I will show you to where you will be staying. It looks like a run down shack on the outside, but on the inside you will find everything that you need. No one will bother you, since it is near the border of Daein and up a mountain near Nox," said the wyvren rider.

They left the inn and to save time they got on to the beast and flew the wyvren toward the place where Volke was to live.

Once they had arrived Volke saw how bad the shack looked. On the outside there was no paint, it looked like every board of wood was about to fall off, and it also had broken windows. "Well here we are. This is where you will be staying. I will give you your first assignment later this week," said the mysterious employer.

After the man left Volke walked inside his temporary home. Unlike the destroyed outside the inside had very good furniture and a soft bed. Volke looked around to see what was holding the shack together. The walls were made of brick and the windows he saw outside were fake. There were windows behind the broken ones that he had seen outside.

Volke decided to sharpen his knives before he went to bed. He went into a deep thought once he finished sharpening. Volke thought about the strange man who had given him the books. He wondered who that man could have been and why he was betraying his country. Volke then started thinking about why he accepted his employer's offer of working as a spy. He could not find any answers. Volke could only guess that he would find his purpose in the world soon. He then went to sleep.


	4. The Next Mission

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem in any way, shape, or form.

I also do not own any of the dialogue from the actual game that I used in this chapter.

After a few days of sitting restlessly, Volke heard a knock on the door. Volke looked out the eye hole that he had made the day before. He saw that it was his employer; that he now knows as Ashnard, so he let the man in.

"I've got your first mission. First of all you will need some supplies, because this is far more dangerous than your previous mission. You will be going after a certain artifact of great power, and it is the centerpiece of my plan to take over Daein. So you must not fail. Now this medallion looks like this."

The evil looking man pulled out a piece of parchment and handed it to Volke. Volke examined it carefully. It had several markings around it that looked to be the ancient language, and the most important detail was the blue gem in the center.

"Where will I find it?" asked Volke.

"I do not know its exact location, but I do know that you will find it in a treasury in Begnion."

"What does it do?"

"You need not know what it does. The only thing that you need to know is that you must not touch it directly. If you do, it will make you a killing machine with no control over your body," said the man who looked to be annoyed by Volke. So Volke decided to end the conversation.

"I'll get prepared and I will leave early tomorrow morning," said Volke trying to avoid the wrath of the man in front of him.

"Good. You should be back by the end of the month, and no later than that. Now I have to get back to my duties." With all that said the man left Volke behind.

Volke decided to head to Navassa, before he would leave from Daein to Begnion. On the way to Daein's capital he noticed the huge prison that was recently made in Nox. Volke had only one thought about the prison, _I do not want to end up there. _Volke thought about the strengths and weaknesses of the prison while on his way to Navassa. The prison had very high walls, but no roof over the courtyard which had very few prison cells in it. The back end of the prison was probably already full of prisoners. There were no windows in the far depths of the prison, so the smell probably already dominated the inside. Volke decided to ignore anymore thoughts on the prison as he traveled north to Navassa.

When Volke finally had arrived he couldn't help but notice a certain man turning into an alley. _Hmm... that looks like..._

Volke followed the man into the alley. The man was walking into a Daein Army barrack. Volke quietly sneaked around the building. He found an open window and sat listening in on the man talking with a soldier.

"When the time comes for you to leave, will you come to me, perhaps?" said the man he recognized from the Senate building.

"My Lord?"

"We share a... similar condition. I am far older than I might appear."

"Then, are you one as well...?" the soldier questioned.

"No... but my situation is similar. I can... understand your pain and isolation better than other people."

"But why me?" asked the soldier.

"I have a task that I must accomplish. With you at my side, I would feel more confident of my success."

"If I join you, will I be redeemed?"

"I cannot say. At the very least, however, you will no longer be alone. And neither will I."

"That is enough, then. You have made my decision simple. When I leave here I will find you," said the soldier confidently.

"I will be waiting for you," said the mysterious man.

"I am a soldier in the Daein Army. I serve under the command of General Gawain. My name is Zelgius. May I ask your name, my Lord Sage?"

"My name, of course, I am Sephiran."

After Volke heard all this he wondered what Sephiran's real goal was, since he had given Volke the information on the blood pact a week ago. Volke watched as Sephiran was leaving the building. He followed Sephiran for awhile, then he finally decided to approach him.

Volke walked toward Sephiran from the front , so that he wouldn't surprise him. "I was wondering when you would show yourself," said Sephiran.

"I have a favor I would like to ask you."

"Really, a thief comes to me for a favor! Now tell me young Volke, what is it that you want?"

Volke cleared his throat and reached into his pocket for the parchment that had the picture of the medallion. "I need to find this," said Volke as he handed Sephiran the parchment.

"Ah, really. If your looking for this, than you need not look any further. I have the medallion, but you will have to help me first. Then, I will give it to you."

"So what is it that I need to do?" asked the impatient Volke.

"First of all..."


	5. Volke vs Dragon

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way, shape, or form.

"First of all... Volke, I need this letter delivered. You will face many trials on your way to Goldoa. You may have to fight some dragons."

"Wait a second! I have to go all the way to Goldoa and fight dragons just to deliver this letter?" Volke said with fear in his voice, but a little trace of excitement of the possible challenge of facing a dragon lingered in his mind.

Sephiran remained in his usual calm demeanor. "Yes, you must prove yourself worthy of gaining the medallion. And I may as well kill two birds with one stone. By letting you deliver my letter to Dheginsea while I finish my business in Begnion before I come back here to meet you."

Volke had a cold sweat running down his face. "Do you really think that I can do this?"

"I certainly hope so! Otherwise I'll end up having to do this myself," said Sephiran with a chuckle.

"Fine, I'll do it. But this will be the last time I do more than one job at the same time."

"That is very understandable. Although getting this to the king in the Goldoan capital will not be easy," Sephiran said with a serious tone.

Volke nodded his head and took the letter. "Alright, I should hurry. I only have one month to do this."

"One month? This will take several months, and to get in and out of Goldoa will take a month by itself."

"I understand. It looks like I may get in trouble when I get back, but I can't waste another second." After Volke had said this he quickly left Sephiran behind and made his way south.

"There he goes, and I was just about to give him some of my experimental warp powder too," said Sephiran with a sigh.

Volke decided that he would follow the Ribahn River all the way to Tanas. When he reached Tanas he stocked up on supplies, food, and water. He then rested outside of town under a big tree.

Volke refused to think of anything related to Goldoa, except he did think of what he would do if he had to face a dragon in battle. He could not come up with anything, since he had never seen a dragon fight let alone an actual dragon.

Volke then decided to move on and venture his way across the Ribahn River into Goldoan territory. When he reached the Ribahn River he saw the current was very calm, even though he was close to the ocean. Volke spotted a small row boat near the edge of the water. He inspected it and found that there was not even a single hole, and the oars were in perfect condition. Volke wondered who's boat it was, but then he realized that it didn't matter and that he didn't care. Volke pushed the boat out into the water and began to cross the river. He easily made it to the other side of the Ribahn.

"Now the hard part begins," Volke said to himself as he started walking on Goldoan soil.

There was a large mountain range in front of Volke, but he quickly found an opening. A little to the northwest of him there was a valley between the mountains. Volke decided that he should check out the valley before doing anything else. When he reached the valley he checked the surrounding area for dragons. Luckily there was not a single one in sight. Volke then carefully walked through the valley. Every once in a while a rock would fall from the mountains, so he was always aware of a bigger rock possibly falling.

Once Volke had made it through the valley he searched for any towns or villages, so that he could avoid them at all costs. One of the last things Volke wanted was to run into a dragon this early, since he was worn out from staying awake two days straight walking through the valley.

Volke found a nice large tree that he could sleep in for awhile. Upon waking up he figured out that he needed to head directly west. He started to travel west taking an occasional break to eat and sleep. During a break Volke realized that he had been gone almost two months. "Traveling to the opposite side of the continent really took up a lot of time, and getting this deep into Goldoa took quite a bit of time as well," Volke said to himself.

"Well I better get going," said Volke. He journeyed further west until he saw a huge castle to the southwest of him. Volke changed directions and sped up his pace.

When he finally got near the castle he saw there was two guards at the entrance. _I better find another way in,_ Volke thought. He spotted some random holes in the side of the building that were probably there due to the weather and the age of the structure. Volke quickly climbed himself in to the castle. When he entered he found himself in a large room with a balcony held up by pillars. As he observed the room he did not notice the other man in the room.

"Welcome! I am Rajaion son of the king of Goldoa. You have entered our lands without permission and invaded our castle. I am afraid you must die for your crimes."

Volke quickly turned around and saw the man named Rajaion. "I am just here to deliver a letter to your king from a man named..."

"I do not care why you're here. You must pay for your crimes against Goldoa. You will be fighting me. If you can survive three minutes against me I will hear you out. If you do not then you will be dead at my feet for the crimes you have committed. Now prepare yourself."

Rajaion transformed into a dark black dragon. Volke stared in awe for a few seconds. Then Volke realized that he is the one that is fighting this dragon.

The dragon fires its dark flaming beam. Volke starts running to his left. Trying to avoid the fatal fire. Volke sees what the flame had done to the area that he was just standing in a few seconds earlier. The ground was burning with a dark flame. "If that had hit me I'd be done for," Volke mumbled to himself.

Rajaion then breathed out the dark fire again. This time he did a sweeping flame that followed Volke as he ran away from the deadly ray. After successfully dodging the attack Volke decided he needed to fight back in some way, but before Volke could think of anything Rajaion had taken flight.

The dangerous black dragon charged at him from the air. Volke reacted quickly by running toward the pillar behind him. He ran straight up the pillar and did a back flip, which caused Rajaion to fly right into the pillar. Volke landed on Rajaion's back as he was still crashing into the pillar. Volke then quickly ran toward Rajaion's head while he was still down recovering from the blow to his face. Volke drew a dagger and slashed the black dragon down from his right eye to the bottom of the dragon's head. Rajaion roared in pain.

Volke then ran to the nearest intact pillar and climbed his way up to the balcony. Rajaion got up and looked around for his opponent. Volke waited for about thirty seconds before he made his move. While the dragon was still looking for him, Volke decided to surprise him from above. Volke quietly jumped off the balcony with his dagger still drawn. Volke then cut the dragon all the way down its back as he slid down the dragon's back himself. Rajaion again roared in pain. This time the black dragon stayed up and swept his tail behind him knocking Volke away. Volke was hit hard and he crashed into a pillar.

Shaken by the severe blow Volke could hardly get up. Rajaion then transformed into his beorc like state. Thinking the battle was over he walked over to Volke. Volke then saw that his opponent was back in his beorc form. Volke got up and moved toward Rajaion slowly.

Rajaion was completely caught by surprise. "How did you survive?"

Volke responded with confidence, "I never fail … at any job. No matter how tough... I will always finish the job."

Rajaion who was moved by the young thief's determination and perseverance and decided that Volke was worthy of gaining permission to see his father, the king. "Alright the three minutes are up. You have earned my support."


	6. Escape

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem in any way, shape, or form.

With Rajaion's help Volke was able to go see the king of the dragons. "Why have you brought this beorc before me?" asked the king.

"Father, he has proven his worth to me in battle. I ask you to take his letter that was to be delivered to you only."

"Very well, I will read it. Bring it to me Nasir."

The man named Nasir went to Rajaion and Volke. "The letter please," said Nasir. Volke reached into his pocket and handed the letter over to him. Nasir walked toward the king and handed him the letter.

The king looked over it for awhile. When he was done reading you could see the anger in his eyes. Volke became afraid, because of the expression on Dheginsea's face. "Rajaion! Assemble a squad of our finest red dragons. You will be going to Daein to find your sister! Do not fight anyone! Remember our promise to the Goddess!" yelled the king.

"Yes, father," said Rajaion. "What should I do with this man?"

"Take him to Ena and have her heal him. I want him gone by tomorrow."

Rajaion helped Volke to the other side of the castle and gave him to his fiancée. Volke wondered how she could get him back on his feet before tomorrow. "I'll be giving you some medicine that we dragons usually use. It should heal you right away. There is a chance that you may die though," said Ena.

Volke was shocked. _How could the medicine be so strong that I might die from it, _Volke thought. Volke could not make himself speak the question. Ena then had him open his mouth and swallow the medicine.

"It may be bitter, but it can really help. Although, since you are a beorc, I do not know whether you will die from it," said Ena with no trace of concern in her voice.

Volke was still sitting in the chair that Ena had sat him in. Then all of a sudden, Volke felt ten times stronger and he could feel his broken bones going back to normal. 'Wow! I feel completely better. I'm not sore at all. In fact I feel stronger than I was before!' Thought Volke with a smile on his face. "Well, I guess I should go before your king kills me," said Volke in a serious tone.

Volke then ran out the room. As he exited the castle he saw Rajaion and some more dragons preparing to leave. "Ah, you're not dead," said Rajaion. "Would you like to travel with us to the border?"

Volke nodded his head. Thinking it would be safer to travel with dragons rather than traveling alone. When they reached the Ribahn River, Volke had to take a break to sleep. Rajaion and the dragons decided that they should keep moving, so they left Volke behind and continued on their way to Daein. When Volke woke up he saw that the dragons had moved on. "I wonder how long I slept?" Volke asked aloud.

"I would wager, about a day in a half," said a recognizable voice. Volke looked up to his right and saw Sephiran standing next to him.

"You surprised me. Anyway the mission was a success," said Volke as he got up.

"I see that. Here is the medallion," said Sephiran as he handed over the medallion with wrappings around it. "I also have a gift for you. I meant to give it to you when you left. This is my experimental warp powder," said Sephiran as he pulled out a sack. "Use it wisely. In fact try it right now."

"How do I use it?" Volke asked while putting away the medallion.

"It's quite simple. You grab a handful and imagine where you want to go. Then you throw it on the ground. For instance imagine the capital of Daein. Then when you throw it on the ground you will find yourself in Nevassa. You can also imagine where in Nevassa you want to go. For example, you could warp to inside the castle."

"Okay, I grab a handful and imagine being in the castle. Then I throw it on the ground?" said Volke with uncertainty.

"Yes, and by the way Ashnard is now very close in line to becoming the king of Daein," said Sephiran confirming that Volke should go to the castle.

"What happened," asked Volke knowing that Ashnard was far from becoming king.

"It would seem that a plauge is passing through Daein killing hundreds of people including the royal family," Sephiran said with no sign of emotion on his face.

"I've got to get this to him soon. I'm months overdue on getting this to him." Volke then grabbed a handful and threw it onto the ground.

Volke then found himself in the castle. He was next to an open window in a bedroom. Ashnard then marched into the room after hearing the noise that the warping process made. "Ah, thief, you are alive. Do you have the medallion?"

"Yes, it's right here," said Volke as pulled out the medallion in it's wrappings.

Ashnard quickly grabbed the medallion. He then unwrapped it. "This is it, I finally have it!" Ashnard then called in a guard. "Take this to Palmeni Shrine as fast as possible." The guard quickly ran out of the room.

"Now thief, wait at the inn near the gate of Nevassa. I will meet you there in one month to discuss your pay," Ashnard commanded.

Volke then took his leave and exited through the window.

Volke then decided he would pull off some odd jobs for people around town or find some information on anything useful. He first traveled to his hut on the mountains to claim his things that he had left there. Volke knew that his contract would be up in a month. Which would mean he would have to renew his contract or leave. Volke figured that Ashnard would not let him go away easily. Knowing of the terrible plague around Daein, Volke decided once he got his pay he would run for it. He had to think of some way to escape if necessary from the inn. Volke decided a lantern could come in handy if he needed a fire to couse confusion. Upon leaving the hut with all of his knives, daggers, and the one lantern. He then returned back to Nevassa on foot to avoid wasting his warp powder.

Once returning to Nevassa he got himself a room in the inn. Volke set some of his stuff down in the room and locked the door. Volke then left through the window to search for something to do. He traveled around town on top of buildings so he could sneak around if he had to. He spotted two Daein soldiers in an alley having a conversation. As he got closer he could hear something that could be useful in the near future.

"Hey, have heard about the new item Ashnard has acquired," said one guard.

"No, what is it."

"They say it is a medallion that has magical powers beyond anyones wildest dreams," said the first guard.

"What kinda powers do ya think it has," said the second guard.

The first guard went down to a whisper. "They say it has the powers of the dark god." After the guard had said this, the two walked away in silence.

The rest of the month Volke tried to gain some more information on the medallion, but could not find anyone who would talk about it. Volke then returned to the inn and set up the lantern on the small table in his room. Then the last night at the inn he heard someone opening the door. Volke quickly put away his dagger that he had fought Rajaion with. As Ashnard entered, Volke spotted a guard with him. The guard waited outside the closed door while Ashnard and Volke started their conversation.

They sat down at the small table in the middle of the room that had the lit oil lantern on it. "Here is the rest of your pay, since your contract is up. However, you were late on your mission by a whole three months. I am..."

A soldier suddenly ran into the room. "Sir, the medallion has been stolen and the caretakers have run away! We are pursuing them as we speak!"

Ashnard jumped out of his seat. He called in the guard standing outside the door. Ashnard then whispered to the two soldiers and then left them behind.

Just as Ashnard left one of the soldiers reached for his spear that was on his back. Volke quickly reacted by picking up the table and throwing it at them. The table knocked them down and the lantern crashed to the floor starting a massive fire in the room. Volke then fled out the window and landed on another guard. Volke then quickly climbed up on to the next building.

Volke reached for his bag of warp powder. He imagined the bridge that leads to Crimea and threw the powder to the ground. Volke found himself in front of the bridge next to a tree. He saw two figures running toward the bridge that was guarded by five soldiers. One of the figures had a large sword and the other had a staff in one hand and what looked to be the medallion in the other. The man with the sword ran straight at the soldiers and cut them down with ease. More soldiers quickly arrived. They were armed with bows and spears.

Volke without thinking moved into the way of the arrows heading toward the two with the medallion. Volke took several arrows to his back. The two ran toward Volke to help him. Volke was pulling out his warp powder. When the two reached them Volke spoke up, "I've tried this before, but put your hands on me and I will use this warp powder to take us to Crimea." They quickly put their hands on him. Volke grabbed enough powder that could warp them all right into his old alley next to the castle in Melior.

After warping there, Volke fainted and fell to the ground, but the man caught him before he hit the ground.


	7. Reunion

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way shape or form

Volke started to moan as he woke up. He felt terrible. His back still hurt and his legs felt weak.

"He is waking up," said a woman's voice.

As Volke opened his eyes he saw a happy looking man standing over him. "Ah, my dearest friend Volke. How I missed you. You gave me a fright as you laid in a deep slumber. I am is so pleased you are among us. How joyful this occasion is, and I could sing a beautiful song unto thy beautiful goddess above."

"Oh, it's Bastian..." said Volke with a sigh. "How long have I been out."

"It has been almost three days," said a large man sitting at a table in the center of the room.

Volke looked over at the man and recognized as the man he had saved from Daein soldiers. He then looked around the room to see that the woman from the other night was there as well.

"My name is Greil, and this is my fiancée Elena. I would like to thank you for helping us escape from Daein."

"It was no problem. I was escaping Daein as well. My contract with Daein was up and my employer decided that I was no longer needed. So some soldiers tried to kill me. I also noticed you have the medallion," said Volke as he was trying to get out of bed.

Bastian helped Volke stand up as Greil continued the conversation. "So you know about the medallion and its powers then."

"Yes, I learned that it has great powers that can consume a person and make them into a killing machine. I also heard that it has a dark god within it."

"Yes, that is what I have heard as well. I don't understand this part though. Elena and the herons can hold this medallion without being affected by its powers," said a puzzled Greil.

"That is indeed odd. If thy artifact that thou has in possession can create such disaster, then why can it not possess thy beautiful lady?" said Bastian.

"Who knows? I really don't care as long as Daein does not have it," said Volke.

"Ah, the time has come. We must be along to see thy King. I shall speak more later, my friend Volke," said a rushing Bastian.

Bastian then left the room with Greil and Elena. Volke was still in some pain as he laid back onto the bed to sleep some more as he waited for them to come back.

Volke was in a deep sleep until he heard the door open. Volke then sat up in the bed to see Greil, Elena, and one other woman dressed in Crimean armor enter the room.

"I am glad that you have decided to join me on my diplomatic mission to Gallia," said the young red haired soldier.

"It is not a problem for us, since Daein is still after us," said Elena as she was packing her new clothes into a bag.

"I am grateful that your king gave us this opportunity to do this," Greil said as he was also packing supplies for the journey.

"Volke, would you like to come with us as well?" asked Elena.

Volke realized that he felt stronger now after his last rest. Volke began to wonder if the medicine he had in Goldoa was still in affect. "I might as well," Volke said while he gathered his thoughts.

"I don't agree with this!" said the female knight.

"Volke saved us! We owe him our trust!" said Elena

The Knight sighed. Still not in agreement. "I guess it can't be helped. Do you have anything that could help on this mission."

"I don't have much left, but it should help report back to Crimea on the situations. It's a warp powder that can take one of us back to Crimea instantly then when your finished there you can back to Gallia quickly without having to travel by horse. I believe I have only enough for two more uses."

"That will be helpful, but I must ask where did you get it?" asked the soldier.

Volke thought for a moment and decided it was best to keep it a secret for now. "I can't tell you."

"So let me get this straight, you can go back to the king to report once and then come back. Oh, I forget to tell you. I am Titania."

"I'm just your average thief. I won't be talking to your king. I will talk to Bastian instead," said Volke.

"That is fine. We should be leaving soon, so I suggest you pack your things."

Volke then looked into the corner and saw his bag just sitting there already packed. "I guess that I am already done."

A few minutes later Greil and Elena finished packing. Greil then put his sword on his back and Volke put his knives and daggers onto his belt.

Before the could leave Bastian had to say his goodbyes and wish them well on their trip to Gallia. They then set off on the long trip through Crimea and then into the deep forests of Gallia.


	8. Volke's Past

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way, shape, or form.

As they walked through the deep forests of Gallia, Volke was on high alert. Volke did not know what to expect. He had never traveled in a group, except for when he was being lead out of Goldoa by Rajaion and the red dragons. "You can relax Volke," said Greil who was walking behind him.

"Sorry. I've never been in Gallia."

"That's alright, it is my first time as well," said Greil. "Besides we have a Crimean knight with us. Gallians would not even try to attack one of their possible allies."

"Plus, they are expecting us," Elena added.

Volke then put up his knife as they continued to walk.

As they reached a fort in the forest Volke instantly drew his knife. "Do you hear that?"

"Yes, I do. What do you think it is?" asked Titania.

"It sounds like arrows being shot," said Greil as they walked toward the fort.

Volke then began to climb up the fort and went in a window, while Greil walked in the entrance with Elena and Titania behind him. Volke was climbing through the rafters looking for the source of the noise. The others were looking into rooms. Volke then climbed down and went over to the others with him. "I believe it is coming from behind that door," Volke said while pointing down a hallway.

They quickly made their way toward the door at the end of the hallway. Greil knocked down the door as he drew his blade. They then saw a middle aged man lying on the ground severely wounded, a young red haired man was crying over the dying man, and a rather large laguz retreating from the scene through a hole in the fort's wall.

The young man then started to cried out for his Father over and over as Greil and Elena tried to comfort the young man.

Volke and Titania stood back away from the sad scene before them. "Such a pity," said Titania. "They were probably hunting for food. Then ended up being attacked by that laguz."

"Why would a laguz do that when they are expecting us?" asked Volke.

Titania sighed then said, "I don't know."

Volke pondered at what the reason may have been, but Volke decided to shrug it off as they buried the man.

"I'm truly sorry for what has happened is there anything else that I can do for you?" Greil asked the young redhead.

The young man thought things through in his head before answering. "I would like to go with you."

Greil looked toward Titania for her response. "Of course but I warn you we are going to Gallia as ambassadors for Crimea," said Titania.

The young man looked disgusted. "You can't negotiate with those sub-humans! They killed my Father!"

"We will protect you. They won't harm us in any way. Unless they want a war with Crimea," responded Titania. "And please refrain from calling them sub-humans."

Titania then told the others to hurry up or they would be late.

Volke and the young man walked behind the others as they continued.

"I don't know if you heard but my name is Shinon. What's yours?"

"My name... is Volke. I'm only here to see what the beast laguz are like. Then I'm out of here."

"So you look like a thief. You plan on stealing from those sub-humans?" Shinon asked. 

"No. And I assume your an archer."

"Yeah, I am. My Father taught me everything about using a bow."

"Hmm. You're lucky to have had him, remember that." said Volke as he went to catch up with the rest of the group.

Shinon wondered what was going through the young thief's mind after the comment he made.

Volke started to think to himself about his own parents. He never knew them. At least not very well. They were killed when he was around four years old. He lived his life traveling from one orphanage to the other until he ran away for good. Volke continued to think of what it would have been like to have had parents. Would he still be a thief or would he have done something completely different. Most likely something different, but Volke wondered if life would have been better that way.

Volke was now quite rich for a man of his age. He thought the money would make it easier as his life went on, but so far it hadn't felt too satisfying.

He was always in a position where others could have killed him easily, but he had managed to sneak out of it every time. As dangerous as it was though, it was the only thing that kept him going. When he fought it kept him on his toes and even excited.

The many things that could have happened kept Volke awake later that night as they camped. He would have never met his only friend, he would never have survived a fight with a dragon, and would never have met the kind and considerate couple of Greil and Elena.

As daylight started to shine through the trees the began to get ready to continue their trip to Gallia. The were a few miles away, which gave Volke a little comfort.


	9. Gallia

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way shape or form.

Volke had been traveling a few days with Greil, his wife Elena, the Crimean knight Titania, and the newest part of the crew was a young archer by the name of Shinon, who they had only found the day before.

They now stood at the edge of Gallia's capital. Volke was very impressed by how large the structures looked. As Volke thought about them he concluded it must not have been as hard for the laguz as it would be for a beorc to build something of that scale. The beorc were not as strong as the laguz, and it probably took a lot longer than twenty years to build the castle alone.

As they started to walk closer to the castle they passed by several laguz who looked at them with hate and maybe just a trace of fear. Volke dared not look at them directly in the eyes, with the fear that they may all attack. It is true that Volke at one point had taken on a dragon, but an army of beast laguz would surely overwhelm him and his fellow travelers.

It appeared that Shinon was returning the gaze of hate back at the laguz. Volke just decided to dismiss it, and continue following Titania and Greil toward the castle. When they finally arrived at the castle doors Volke was even more impressed as he looked at the castle. It was made with huge stones and bricks that a beorc could definitely not lift.

Volke then turned his attention to the laguz at the doors. There were four of them two tigers and two cats. Then one of the laguz spoke up. "You are the Crimean envoy correct?"

Titania responded with a quick yes. She appeared to be a little nervous despite having showed no fear on the way to Gallia.

"Very well. I will show you to the throne room immediately."

There were several different styles of architecture in the halls of the castle, each generation of the beast laguz showing their own culture and art on the walls of the castle.

The throne must be deep into this castle, Volke thought. It is a very smart idea, but it can have its drawbacks, continued Volke's thoughts. Volke's thinking ended as they had finally arrived to the throne room.

"I will warn you to be on your best behavior," said the laguz that had guided them to the throne room doors.

The laguz then opened the large double doors to reveal a large elaborate room that looked out on a courtyard. The king was waiting for them while sitting in his throne. "Welcome!" said the loud booming voice of the king.

"Thank you for letting us come your majesty," said Titania as she bowed to the king.

"No need to be so formal, call me Caineghis. Do you require anything else besides our peace discussions and rooms to stay in?"

Greil then spoke up, "I'm sorry for interrupting, but there is one issue that is bothering me."

" Who would you be?"

"My name is Greil."

"What is the issue that is bothering you Greil?" asked the king.

"As we were on our way here to have are peace negotiations we came upon a large laguz that attacked this young man and his father," said Greil as he placed his had on Shinon's shoulder. "Unfortunately his father did not survive."

King Caineghis stroked his beard, "That is unfortunate. I will admit there has been some revolts since the peace discussions have started taking place they have attempted to attack envoys in the past. They must have thought this young man and his father were the envoys. I will continue to try and find those responsible for these attacks."

They were then dismissed to their rooms. Greil and Elena had a room together; Titania had her own room, and Volke and Shinon in another. Later that night when everyone was asleep, Shinon woke up and got out of bed. "Good he is still asleep."

As Shinon neared the door, a voice stopped him. "Where are you going at this hour?"

Shinon turned around to see Volke standing there. "How did you?" Shinon was then interrupted by Volke who had put his gloved hand around his mouth.

Someone was banging on the door. Shinon went to grab his bow and quiver. When Shinon had turned around to face the door he saw that Volke had disappeared into the shadows of the room.

The door flew off its hinges as several beast laguz entered the room. They immediately charged at Shinon, while bearing their fangs. Shinon fired his first shot, which hit its mark going right into a tiger's throat. Volke had joined the action as well, jumping out of shadows stabbing his dagger into a cat laguz's back. The remaining two laguz continued their charge at Shinon, when a black lion laguz came running into the room knocking the two smaller laguz into the wall. The lion then pinned one to the floor while the other one got up and retreated out of the room by jumping out the window. A blue cat that had started guarding the door when the lion had charged into the room, then jumped out the window after the laguz that ran away.

The King entered the room. "I hope you are not hurt," he said.

Volke looked at Shinon who had an angry look in his eyes, then said, "We are fine. Are the others alright?"

"Yes, and strangely enough their rooms were not attacked. Giffca take that traitor to the dungeon."

The black lion then transformed and picked up the unconscious laguz and left the room.

Another laguz came into the room. "Your majesty! Ranulf has found their base!"

"Very good, I will be there soon in the meantime will you clean up this mess."

"Yes, sir." Said the laguz.

"Now you two I will take you to another room. Hopefully by tomorrow morning this matter will be settled," said Caineghis to Volke and Shinon.


	10. The Rebellion in Gallia

Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or its characters in any way, shape, or form.

The next morning, Volke left the room that he and Shinon shared. Volke exited the room through the window, so that he would not disturb anyone who was still asleep. Volke began to climb the walls of the castle, with speed that would make a cat laguz jealous. Volke examined the walls with his keen eyes. 'The walls have elaborate illustrations on them. I noticed them when we approached the castle, but from up here it just looks like places to plant your feet to climb,' Volke thought. The young thief continued his thoughts about the pictures depicted on the side of the castle. They looked like great battles from far back in the past due to the eroding rocks that was put on the castle walls to create the image.

When Volke reached the top he looked into the distance. He saw the extent of how big the Gallian Forest extended across the land. He could still see an occasional fort deep in the forest. His eyes looked at the forts until he saw movement at one of them. He saw laguz fighting each other around the fort's perimeter. There was a red lion fighting in the middle of the crowd of laguz. Volke thought for a moment that it might be King Caineghis. Then he thought differently, 'it couldn't be him this lion seems smaller than Giffca the black lion, who was smaller than the king in height.' Then he finally saw the king who was much bigger and seemed even more agile than the smaller lion. Volke watched the fight unfold memorizing the moves of the lions, cats, and tigers.

Volke noticed someone approaching him from behind. He turned around to see several laguz in their transformed state coming up the roof towards him. A lion the one who was definitely the leader of these laguz untransformed so that he could speak the beorc tongue, which was his first mistake. "The king is so predictable. He left his special human guests to go deal with a problem that shouldn't exist. My brother Caineghis is a fool tainted by the human ways," said the lion laguz. He looked away from Volke and started laughing, the second mistake.

Volke took advantage of these mistakes disappearing from their sight. The lion looked back at where Volke was, only to see that he was gone. Volke then reappeared behind the lion stabbing him with two of his daggers right in the lions back. The lion started growling in pain and frustration as he transformed into his beastly form, to combat the clever thief.

Then Volke jumped off the castle and started to climb down to the window that he had came from. The cat laguz gave chase. The cats were gaining on him as the climbed downward. Volke threw one of his many knives at the closest cat hitting it right on the bottom of one of his paws. Which caused the cat to revert to its untransformed state. The laguz lost his balance due to the blow and fell to his death. Volke didn't let the sight of the laguz falling distract him from his scaling down the wall. Volke quickly entered the window and stood beside it. As the first cat was about to enter Volke stabbed it between the eyes and pushed it off the windowsill using the bottom of his boot. Then he quickly exited the room. As he entered the hallway he saw Greil, Titania, Shinon and Giffca fighting more laguz.

The battle raged on as beorc fought against the laguz. During the fighting the red lion identified as the king's brother arrived and quickly made his way towards Volke. Desperate for revenge for the blow Volke had done to him he charged. Greil had other ideas as he saw the lion charge.

"Switch!" yelled Greil. As quickly as a flash of light Volke and Greil maneuvered around each other just in time for Greil to block the lion's claws. The lion leaped backwards and let lose a mighty roar. Greil decided to push forward to gain more momentum in the battle. Giffca had finished fighting the tigers he had been fighting and moved to help Greil.

Volke then realized that Elena was missing from the fray. Which meant she must still be in her room. Volke then slipped away from the battle. A few more minutes of fighting passed when all of a sudden the fighters heard a woman scream. Greil quickly disengaged from fighting the lion to find in his room Elena cornered by a cat laguz.

Greil headed towards the cat as fast as he could. Volke then came crashing through the window tackling the laguz to the ground stabbing it repeatedly. As life left the laguz a great roar echoed through the halls. Greil and Volke rushed into the large hallway followed by Elena. King Caineghis had arrived with another red lion and a blue cat laguz. The brother of the king was lying in a pool of his own blood.


End file.
